Bagasse concrete



A. C. MILLER ETAL BAGASSE CONCRETE June 3, 1958 Filed Nov. 15, 1955 wzobmm. ml

United States Patent O BAGASSE CONCRETE Allyn C. Miller, Palo Alto, and Numan Fishman, San

Jose, Calif., assignors, by mesne assignments, to Hawaiian Development Company, Ltd., Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, a corporation of the Territory of Hawaii Application November 15, 1955, Serial No. 546,971

13 Claims. (Cl. 10G-93) umes, roof tiles, floor tiles, tanks, tiower pots, etc.

more particularly, the invention relates to a light weight concrete employing sugar cane bagasse as the principal aggregate, and method of compounding the same.

The invention is illustrated by a drawing showing a diagram of the process of making the concrete and forming it into a standard production article.

One object of the invention is to make from bagasse, a light weight concrete which has a 'high strength and which will retain its strength or increase in strength with age. Another object of the invention is to make a light- I weight concrete from bggassgwhichgavnwwxpgsed to the weath'for used underwategiyvithout losswofmswtrgngth #-eigLigsgilingrrsiiii"another object f tivemion is to produce a strong, water resistant concrete from bagasse at a low cost commensurate with the cost of ordinary concrete in which rock is used as the aggregate, but with the added advantages of light weight, nailability and resistance to shock. Other objects of the invention will appear from the description which follows hereinafter. Many attempts have been made to produce light weight or low density concrete by the use of light weight aggregates such as sawdust, straw, excelsior, shavings and similar fibrous materials. Bagasse,'the residue from sugar cane after pressing out the juice, has also been tried without much success. The use of these librous materials created special problems, particularly as they interfered w' and hardening of the cement in the case where Portland cement was used as the binder. The action was chemical or physico-chemical and appeared to be caused by various substances which migrated from the fiber into the cement, preventing its hardening. The problem has been particularly severe in the case of cane bagasse. It has long been known that cane sugar (.sucroselwexggtgprgfppnd effect on the settingftiiortlandnceinent, traces only beiiigwii'c'tivef slow the 'setbting r'a'te while small amounts prevent setting entirely. The chemistry of the action has not been well understood. Accordingly, when using sugar c agnewbegi-,jn cement, it was found that the cement refused tggsetkgevnmthgyghthe fiber wereslashed.,cumplelre Ofdolalzlsllgar, Apparently, the lime in the cemeiictned on some substance in the bagasse to solubilize and extract it. Possibly this substance is a polysaccharide, hemicellulose, lignocellulose or similar material. Tannins, lgums and resins present in the bagasse may also have a detriment-al elect as may also pectins and pentosans. i It was found that digesting the 'bagasse in Liildgallgalirie u Mw n a s solgtinavas agigyantageous if` carried outf prior. tov mixing wi th, tgh epc`e-mlent, but the cost was considerable vand the lossesMQ[librewefe"excessive,q Addition of lime to the bagasse was alsb"b`eielcial, but it slowed the setting of the cement and gave a product which lost its strength when exposed to water as in a water pipe or ume used in irrigation or on roof tile or tank linings for Water Patented June 3, 1958 tanks, the lime appearing to be leached away by the water.

We have made an extensive study of this problem and have now discovered that a strong, water resistantncon- 5 Creasafe? made ammesse, byscpniiiyugit-wifh bothdirne, z inl*, afuiffzgolaunam The discovery was made in the course of a research investigation when it was found that the strength of a concrete mix containing lime and a diatomaceous earth pozzolan was increased instead of decreased when exposed to water in the leaching test.

As indicated above, in o rgler to use fresh bagasse without pre-treatmngtL a substantial excess of linie must be added to "thmconcrehte'mix to'obtain suitable hardening or strength of the concrete. This large excess of lime results in two unfavorable conditions: (a) The resulting concrete mass sets slowly, and (b) the set and hardened concrete is subject to lime migration and lime leaching. The second situation is usually more serious than the lirst. Slow setting can be oiset by additions of calcium chloride or similar accelerator. Lime leaching, accord- -ing to our invention, can be overcome by the addition of a pozzolan which reacts with the lime, especially when subjecting the concrete to a higher than ambient temperature to accelerate the reaction between the excess lime and the pozzolan.

The bagasse employed in our studies was grown in Hawaii, but the invention is applicable to any sruganor sorghum canewbagasse from which the sugar has been pressed anawashed. If'desired, the Abagasse may usdMfresh or after storing in a moist condition which permits -ferrnentatgion to ggstroy the polysaccharides. lis generally nven-ient to dry the bagasse indu-handle iLmiieiia-Elebut not necessary to shred or disintegrate the material to reduce the fiber length to about 1/2 inch or less and this can be done in a Rietz disintegrator or other suitable mill, preferably a hammer mill. The shredded liber can then be screened or graded to remove dust, pith, etc. although this step is not essential. We have found that removal of pith produces a stronger concrete and this can be done by screening and removing the pith from the bagasse iiber after an initial shredding treatment. Pith can also be separated by an air current which carries the light, dry pith away from the fiber. Pith alone can be used to make a concrete of exceptionally low density, although of less crushing strength.

The shredded e fiber ma be washedmwith hot vesit'toxmoxecaax-sglufesugars, and ft iS d jired." to produce a concrete of extra high strengthhthejmeiis Itreated with caustic soda, caustic potash, ammonium hyy -to remove ectins, pentosans and polysaccharides as in icat e' a o-vn as ing, t or mixing with the cement,

v. rl

. -ais A Y M ozzolan. Washing or pretreatmg the; lijsr not require owever, an e priiicipa advantages of our process is that the cost of any pretreatment Wannee..

or er to speed the setting of the cement in the presence of the lime, we have found it very beneficial to add a water soluble polyvalent metal salt, preferably iron, aluminum or calcium chloridg, aluminum or iron sulfate. Either ferrie -or-ferrous chloride can be used. Calcium chloride, although less effective than iron chloride is generally cheaper and adds no color to the product. These salts appear to activate the lime iand are called activators herein.

Best results are obtained by adding to the bagasse the lime, then the pozzolan, then the cement in that order. It is preferred to add the lime as a slurry in water. The calci e can be added at any point, generally most conveniently with water. After thorough mixing in a commercial concrete mixer with the proper amount of water to give the desired consistency, the wet concrete is charged into the molds or forms. When used as a lining it can be applied to a surface by trowelling as in plastering or by an air gun as in the gunite" process.

For making tile, pipe or umes, the mix should be rather dry so that it can be pressed or tamped into the molds and the molds removed soon thereafter leaving the concrete shape with sufficient strength to stand in a curing chamber. Ra is effected in a high humidity chamber heated with live steam to a temperature of about 120 tTSUvFfor abt ten to twenty hours, and even faster curing results from heating with steam in an autoclave or pressure chamber.

The drawing shows a typical operation in which the bagasse concrete is mixed and molded into fiumes for irrigation. These fiumes may be as shown with a generally semi-circular cross section.

A suitable formulation for making irrigation iiumes is the following:

Formulation F-il: Parts (Wt.) Fresh, whole bagasse (42% moisture) (dry Referring to the drawing, mixer 10 which may be a pug mill, receives the charge in the relative amounts indicated. If mixer 10 is operated batchwise, we prefer to charge the bagasse initially from 11, then the lime from 12, half the water from 13 and the calcium chloride from 16. After mixing, the pozzolan is added from 14 with further mixing, followed by the cement from 15 and the remainder of the water from 13. The calcium chloride can be dissolved in a portion of the water and can be added before the cement if desired.

The mixed, wet concrete is then hoisted to feed hopper 17 which supplies the molding machines represented by 18. Automatic tamping machines charge the wet mix to cylindrical, cored molds which pass to curing room 19 where the green strength of the concrete is suicient to allow removal ofthe molds immediately. Empty molds are returned to the molding stage 18 to be used again. The green" parts in the form of pipe sections remain in the curing room until hard, usually 14 hours or longer. They then pass to the saw 20 which splits them lengthwise, making two liumes from each section. The iinal ume is indicated at 21.

From the amount of charge indicated there can be made 375 lineal feet of cylindrical sections 20 inches in diameter or twice that length of ume, 750 ft. They are next stored in the yard where curing continues. The product was hard and uniform. It had a density of 52 lbs. per cu. ft. and a crushing strength of s. sq. 1n. corresponding to a crushing height of 1020 feet after 14 days curing at room temperature.

The crushing or compressive strength was determined by placing a 2 inch cube of the material between the jaws of a compression test machine (Baldwin-Tate, 12,000 lb. load capacity) adjusted to apply the load at the rate of 0.15 inch per minute. The strength of each composition was determined from the average of three test specimens. The specimens were saturated with water when tested for compression.

The density was determined by drying the specimens for 24 hours at 105 C., or until constant weight was obtained, then determining the weight and volume of the specimen from which the density was calculated.

The crushing height can be calculated from the compressive strength and the density, and is the maximum height of a uniform column one square inch in cross- 4 I section whose own weight will not crush its base. It is a more realistic characterization than compressive strength as it includes the density factor. Compressive strength, alone can be misleading when comparing concretes of different density. inasmuch as higher density is usually accompanied by higher strength. Porosity was determined by subjecting a l inch thick specimen to a constant head of water of l5 inches.

Leaching tests were made by subjecting 2 cube specimens to running water for varying periods of time, usually up to ten weeks, then determining the physical properties, particularly density and crushing height.

In order to reduce porosity of our bagasse concrete, we can add clay to the mix as shown in the following formula:

Formulation F-Z: Parts (Wt.)

Fresh, whole bagasse (42% moisture) (dry basis) 1.0

Calcium chloride 0.

Water 1.5 Lime 0.8 Pozzolan 0.8

Clay 0.8

25 Water 1.5

For load bearing members, an increase in the cement content is desirable to obtain the required compressive strength. The following formula gives a concrete suitable for building blocks, bricks, etc.

Formulation S-l: Parts (Wt.)

Fresh, whole bagasse (42% moisture) (dry Portland cement basis) 1.0

Calcium chloride 0.2

water 1.5 Lime 1.2 Pozzolan 1.2

Water 1.75 Cement 3.0

If the bagasse has been aged and partially fermented, then washed to remove solubilized ingredients, the following composition is satisfactory.

45 Formulation S-2: Parts (Wt.) Whole bagasse (dry basis) 1.0 Calcium chloride 0.2 Water 1.5 Lime 0.8

Pozzolan 0.8 Water 1.5 Cement 3.0

Bagasse pith, whether fresh or aged, can be used in much the same way as whole bagasse. Since pith-concrete can be handled more easily than that made with whole bagasse and can be readily formed with pressure techniques such extrusion, vibration and pressure molding into blocks and bricks, concrete made from the pith is of considerable interest. The following three formulas are suitable.

Formulation S4 containing clay is particularly suitable for extrusion because of increased plasticity conferred by the clay.

For wall board and plaster, less strength is required in which case Formulation S-6 containing less cement is suitable.

Increased strength is obtainable by removing the pith from the bagasse, for example, by screening or air classifying. A concrete roof slab of light weight can be made with the following formulation:

Formulation S-7: Parts (wt.)

Bagasse iber (de-pithed) (dry basis) 1.0 lo Calcium chloride 0.1 Lime 0.6 Water 1.25 Pozzolan 0.6 Water 1.5 Cement (Portland) 2.0

Either Standard Portland cement or High Early Strength Portland cement can be used but the curing time is longer in the case of the Standard cement as shown by the following data from typical mixes of bagasse concrete made with whole bagasse lime, calcium chloride and pozzolan:

Curing Comp. Crushing Density, lbsJOu. Ft. Time, Strength, Height,

Daysp. s. i. Ft.

Hih Early Strength Portland ement. 7 925 2150 The pozzolans used in our bagasse concrete are siliceous minerals containing a high content of amorphous silica. A pozzolan is defined as a siliceous or siliceous-aluminous mineral which, in itself, possesses little or no cementitious value but will, in finely divided form and in the presence of moisture, chemically react with calcium hydroxide (lime) at ordinary temperature to form compounds possessing cementitious properties. The reaction of pozzolan with lime is quite slow at ordinary temperatures but is considerably accelerated at elevated temperatures. In our bagasse concrete, the pozzolan combines with excess lime remaining in the concrete after it has hardened and the lime has had its effect in counteracting the anti-hardening substances in the bagasse. The excess lime is thus converted to a cementitious, water insoluble substance whcih is not leached out on exposure of the concrete to water action.

Following are some pozzolans suitable for use in our bagasse concrete:

(1) Airoxa California diatomaceous earth (2) Calcined Hawaiian kaolinite (3) Calcined Hawaiian pumice (4) Pumicite 5) Volcanic ash, trass, tuis, pozzuolana (6) Shalcs and clays high in opaline silica These minerals can be used in their natural state or activated by calcining at a temperature below fusion. They must be ground to a line state of subdivision, 325 mesh and ner, altho some natural pumicites are found already suiciently fine for our purpose. Thus, a deposit of pumicite at Friant, California, is of a neness such that 98% passes a 325 mesh screen. In addition to the above natural pozzolans, we can use artificial pozzolans such as the ily ash from combustion of certain powdered coals and other fuels containing siliceous matter. This material is usually of suicient neness to use without grinding.

The effect of pozzolan in comparison with clay on bagasse concrete is shown by the following tests in which the same mix was used for three lots of concrete except that one lot contained clay, one contained pozzolan, and one had neither additive.

General formulation: Parts by wt. Bagasse-shredded 100 Calcium chloride 20 Lime-slaked Pozzolan or clay 80 Water 150 Portland cement 200 Cubes (2 inch) were molded of each composition, allowed to harden over night in a moist atmosphere at room temperature, then cured for 20 hrs. in a chamber saturated with moisture at 140 F. Following are the compression test results run in duplicate:

The results show a marked increase in strength and hardness in the concrete made with pozzolan.

Leaching tests were made on bagasse concrete to show the effect of pozzolan in comparison with clay, with the following results:

Formulation No. A-35 A-55 Bagasse 100 Cement 200 200. C8012..- 20 20. Lime 80 80. Pozzolan-Airox 8J.

2 (at 140 F.) 55.5.

Leaching tests .ll-35 A-ss Time-weeks Comp., Crush. Change Comp. Crush. Change p. s. i. Ht, Ft. percent p. s. l. Ht, Ft. percent erally about 20 to 80% basedggnthe dryeighhing ofoltlb agfiss'e""Witlly fresh bagasse, however, the ratio 5f lime to bagasse isulsually 80 'to 160%-dry basis.

Bagasse which has been digested' with caustic or pretreated with sodium silicate requires less time n proportion to the amount of pretreatment.

We can modify our bagasse concrete to give it special properties, for example reduced porosity, by addition to the mix of clays, gypsum, etc. Addition of wetting agents facilitates mixing the ingredients, and foaming agents can be added to reduce density by entrapping air. Water re ellants can be added such as emulsions of wax, asphalt, vegetab e, a or mlnera 01s. us a ou 0.5 to 4% of asphalt` in the form of emulsion can be added to the bagasse before mixing with the other ingredients. Similarly, resin soaps can be added to the bagasse fiber and preclpitated thereon by addition of hactivator saltz calcium, iron or aluminmvh'l'd', alum, etc. Pine rosin is very effective in repelling water, only about 0.1 to 1% being required, based on the weight of the bagasse. Peservative agents, such as creosote, pentachlorophenol, copper and mercury salts, can be added to increase the life of the ber when the concrete is long exposed to water. However, the lime and pozzolan appear to form a protective coating '6x-fthe' ibrjextending the life-ifV the fiber when exposed to conditions where vegetable fibers would decay rapidly.

Although we have described our invention with respect to certain specific examples and uses, we do not intend that it be limited thereby. Many uses of our new, low density concrete will occur to those skilled in the art.

One use to which it is especially adapted is wall boardof the type in which a sheet of the concrete is enclosed between two sheets of paper, preferably wrapped over the edges for protection.

Various methods of mixing the ingredients can also be used and we contemplate the use of continuous mixers as well as batch mixers. We can also grind and grade the bagasse ber to any desired length, i. e., 1A, 3A, l, 1% inch to produce different effects in the finished concrete. The short fibers producing a smoother mixture are better suited to casting more intricate parts. Dyes, pigments such as chrome green or rouge, ochre, etc. can bdded to give desired color effects, and when casting is done under pressure, a smooth grain structurecan be obtained suitable for machining and polishing. When formed into heavy structures, posts, piling, beams, oor slabs, etc., steelnreinflorcing cb' included as is customary with concrete using' stone aggregates.

Having thus described'c'iivitin, whatwe claim is:

1. A light weight concrete having the following composition: r

Parts by weight Shredded bagasse containing polysahaxjggs,

dry basis M 100 Portland cement 100 to 400 Lime, hydrated 20 to 160 Water soluble polyvalent metal salt activator for said cement 2to 30 Pozzolan 20 to 200 Water to lgive consistency.

8. The process of making, from bagasse containing Polysjlgghjifrgidgs and Portland cementng, light weight concrete, resistant to the leaching action of water, which comprises combining 100 parts of shredded bagasse with about 2O to 160 parts of lime and water in the presence of about 2 to 30 parts of a water soluble polyvalent metal salt activator for said cement, thereby blocking the migration of said polysaccharides from said bagassemirto said Portland cement, adding about 20 to 10 200 parts of a finely powdered pozzolan to the mixture suicient to combine with excess lime during curing, then thoroughly mixing with about 100 to 400 parts of Portland cement sufficient to bind the bers of said bagasse into a coherent mass, forming the resulting wet mass into a desired shape and thereafter curing it until hard.

9. The process of claim 8 wherein said curing step is conducted in a moist atmosphere at a temperature of about 120 to 150 F. for a period of at least 24 hours.

10. The process of claim 8 wherein said water soluble polyvalent metal salt activator is calcium chloride and the amount employed is 5% to 50% of the weight of said bagasse, dry basis.

1l. The process of claim 8 wherein pith is removed from said bagasse before making it into concrete, thereby increasing the strength of the resulting concrete.

12. The process of claim 8 wherein the ratio of pozzolan to lime is about 1:1.

13. A light weight concrete having a density of about 40 to 100 lbs. per cu. ft. comprising about 100 parts by weight dry basis, of fresh bagasse containing polysaccharides which inhibit the hardening of said concrete, 160 parts of hydrated lime, 80 parts of pozzolan, 325 mesh tineness, 20 parts of calcium chloride and 200 parts of Portland cement with suflcient water to harden the mixture.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHER REFERENCES Note pp. 232-235 of the book entitled Chemistry of Cement and Concrete by Lea & Desch (1935). 

1. A LIGHT WEIGHT CONCRETE HAVING THE FOLLOWING COMPOSITION: 